Immigrant Rights are Human Rights

ANNOUNCEMENTS / NEWS

Franco-Gonzalez Settlement Notice: Pursuant to the settlement reached in Franco-Gonzalez with respect to class members who were ordered removed prior to receiving the protections ordered by the Court, Plaintiffs and Defendants have reached a settlement to provide relief as outlined in the following notices.
Click here for the notices in English and Spanish

Immigrants and Their Advocates File Class Action Lawsuit Against USCIS and DHS for Unlawful Delays in Adjudicating Applications for Employment Authorization: Last Friday, three immigrants and two immigration service providers filed a nationwide class action lawsuit against U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for unlawfully delaying the adjudication of their applications for employment authorization.
Read the press release.

Rivera Practice Advisory: This advisory discusses the recent decision in Rivera v. Holder, which clarifies that immigration Judges have authority to grant release on conditional parole as an alternative to release on monetary bond.
Read full advisory here

Federal District Court Judge Rejects Longstanding Washington Immigration Court Policy as Unlawful: A federal court today held that immigration judges in Washington state must consider releasing detained immigrants on conditions of supervision instead of requiring a money bond.
Read the press release.

Federal Judge Rules Border Patrol Unlawfully Arrested Anacortes Man: A federal district court judge has ruled that the U.S. Border Patrol unlawfully arrested an Anacortes resident in 2011. The ruling came in a case filed on behalf of Mr. Vargas by Northwest Immigrant Rights Project (NWIRP).
Read the press release.

Groups File Lawsuit Challenging Failure of U.S. Customs and Border Protection to Release Agency Files: The Law Offices of Stacy Tolchin, Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild and the American Immigration Council filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of three immigration attorneys and eleven noncitizens challenging the failure of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to timely respond to their requests for case information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
Read the press release.

Media Advisory: Hearing on Children’s Right to Counsel to Take Place Friday, March 6th, 2015: On Friday, March 6, 2015, Federal District Court Judge Thomas Zilly will hear arguments in a case that has received national attention regarding the right of children to have counsel appointed in deportation cases.
Read the press release.

Update on the DAPA/DACA Expansion and Texas Judge's Injunction: The Department of Justice has decided to pursue an emergency stay of the preliminary injunction entered by the Texas federal judge earlier this week that temporarily blocked the implementation of expanded DACA and DAPA.
Read the press release.

NWIRP Responds to the Temporary Ruling on the President's Executive Actions: On Monday, February 16th, a federal judge in Texas issued a preliminary decision that will temporarily delay the implementation of some of the executive actions announced by President Obama in November. NWIRP is disappointed by this setback, but believes it is just a bump in the road, and that eventually, both the expanded DACA program and DAPA program will be implemented.
Read the press release.

NWIRP Welcomes President Obama’s Executive Actions on Immigration: While the President's actions are temporary and offer only limited benefits, they are a significant change in policy and will keep millions of families from being torn apart.
In response to the announcement, NWIRP has released a community advisory and is offering several upcoming free community education events
Read the press release.

NWIRP Files Lawsuit Targeting Corrupt ICE Official: Forged Document Led to Deportation Order Against Long-Time Community Member
Read the press release.

NWIRP Expanding Statewide Efforts to Help Undocumented Youth Gain Education and Career Opportunities: Program supported by recent grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Read the press release.

NWIRP and Partners Ask Federal Court to Block Deportation Hearings for Children Without Legal Representation: Northwest Immigrant Rights Project and partners have asked a federal court to immediately block the government from pursuing deportation proceedings against several children unless it ensures those youth have legal representation. The move comes as immigration courts are speeding up deportation hearings against children in an expedited process sometimes referred to as a "rocket docket."
Read the press release.

NWIRP IS HIRING

Bilingual Administrative Associate — Seattle, WA: We seek a mission-driven, tech-savvy and detail-focused individual to join the organization as a full time Administrative Associate. This bilingual (English/Spanish) person will provide support in a number of areas to NWIRP’s operations and legal staff. The Administrative Associate administers the grants and contracts supporting NWIRP’s critical programs and offers day-to-day IT troubleshooting and maintenance to all four of NWIRP’s statewide offices. More information

Bilingual Legal Advocate/Paralegal (VAWA) — Seattle, WA: Northwest Immigrant Rights Project seeks a full-time bilingual legal advocate/paralegal to work in our Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) unit. The applicant must be fluent in English and Spanish. Full consideration will be given to those who apply by August 12, 2015. More information

Fall Internship 2015 — Seattle, WA: The internship is open to first, second, and third year law students. Applicants should have excellent written and oral communication skills, an interest in immigration law, an ability to work in a diverse and fast-paced work environment, and a commitment to advancing and defending the legal rights of low-income immigrants and refugees. Applicants proficient in Spanish are strongly preferred.

The internship is unpaid, but NWIRP will work with applicants to secure outside funding or academic credit. More information

Document Processing Volunteer (Unpaid) — Seattle, WA: All clients have unique stories and as part of honoring their experiences NWIRP is digitizing the physical case files closed in the last two decades. We call on you to help with the heavy lifting of reading, summarizing, and scanning of these files. More information